Unlocking the treasure chest

- this is why you should soak your nuts, grains and seeds

Soaking has been part of many vegans’, vegetarians’ and raw food eaters’ diets for ages, and now it’s time for the rest of us to learn the benefits and tricks.

Nuts and seeds are filled with vital nutrients, which can help you get the healthy fats and micronutrients that your body need. Eating them dried gives you some of these benefits, but if you want to unlock the full nutritional treasure chest they need to be soaked. Nuts and seeds have, from nature, been given defence mechanisms comprising of toxic substances and enzyme inhibitors, protecting them from sprouting until the optimal conditions are there. Some of which are not good for us, but can be removed by soaking.

Benefits of soaking your nuts, grains and seeds

- Helps free many vitamins for absorption, especially various different vitamin Bs

- Helps neutralize enzyme inhibitors

- Help remove what is called anti-nutrients, substance that inhibit absorption of nutrients

- Makes proteins easier to absorb

- Help develop and grow the healthy enzymes important for a healthy gut

What are enzymes and enzyme inhibitors?

Your body has digestion enzymes that help in breaking down the food we eat, also nuts, seeds and kernels. The bad news is that when eating non-soaked nuts, grains and seeds, they come prepared – they have enzyme inhibitors deactivating your body’s digestive enzymes messing up the digestion. By soaking nuts and seeds before eating them, you can neutralize the enzymes inhibitors making it easier for your body to digest.

How do I soak my nuts, graind and seeds?

1. Put your nuts (or grains or seeds) in a bowl and cover with room temperature water in a 2:1 ration; 2 parts water and 1 part nuts

2. Leave the bowl in room temperature and cover with a tea towel for it to breath. Soaking time depends on type of nut, grain or seed (see more about soaking times here)

3. After soaking drain the water and rinse thoroughly until the water is completely clear. The water will contain the toxins removed, so this is an important step. Some recommend rinsing in water and apple cider vinegar to get rid of the last remnants

Soaking times depend on how hard the nuts, grains or seeds are. The harder the nut, the longer it needs to soak. If they still float after the recommended soaking time, it’s recommended to discard them since thy might be rancid.

Dehydration or drying

Eating your nuts, grains or seeds directly after soaking is very tasteful and delicious. Soft and nice, but will mold within a few days in the fridge! If you want to store them longer or simply just want to eat them hard, you need to dehydrate or dry them. If you are already the lucky owner of a dehydrator your probably already know how to do this. For drying nuts in your oven, this is how you do:

1. Spread the nuts evenly on a tray covered with a tea towel.

2. Dry them for 12-24 hours on the lowest possible heat, with a slightly open oven door

Store the nuts, seeds or kernels in an airtight jar

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Did you know?

Your body rely on you to get vital nutrients from the food you eat. Your body takes care of millions of biological processes every day. Each process depends on certain components and building blocks - which you can only get from fresh, nutritious food, prepared in the right way.

Processed and industrialised prepared food does not give your body what it needs. It is not real food - it cannot give your body fuel to the millions of vital processes to function optimally. Poor quality food does not feed your body well - it only fills your stomach!